Jeanne d'Arc clip is online now

Just uploaded last videoclip from Étoile, Jeanne d'Arc. This time I worked with paint effects on some footages about Crusades, Jeanne d'Arc and east europe (looking like a little middle east) singers. Track is, briefly, about the juxtaposition of western guitar arpeggios and middle east vocals.

My intention was putting together women from both sides in Cusades: a western woman, the "étoile" in this case, which dared to act like a male soldier in a demented inquisition environment; and docile eastern singers. They got no moments of glory followed by dying on a pyre, but a continuous subordination, so actually it's a pondering about women's troubles in western or eastern world. Different ways and degrees of cruelty, same patriarchism.

Clip simply follow this scheme and adds a movie picture support. I needed just a couple of days to finish it as it's a "punk" expression in videomaking. This time I tried to catch the result on the fly, without exceeding in refurbishing every single frame. Not a draft, but a quicker language. And a different subject, it wasn't the right place to unleash some After Effects frenzy quirknesses. At the opposite, I worked on slow motion footages, to achieve a relaxed but a little gloomy mood.

I found quite cruel in the last sequence to put side by side Jeanne d'Arc in flames and a smiling singer. It was not intended as a revenge of muslim on a christian, but the cruelty in life itself. While one is dying, the other is enjoying his art.

New Videoclip from Étoile: Intro

I just finished to render and upload on Youtube Intro videoclip. This time I found right tech info on HD movies. Master is in HDTV PAL 1080p (1920x1080), but I rendered it at 720p (1280x720) to follow the exact Youtube HD standard.
No loss of detail as After Effects picks from same original files and redraw from scratch all frames. Rendering time about 2,5 hours. Online HD version of Intro videoclip is broadcast quality, in fact.
I think this is last video I assemble with AE: it's a madness make anim sync with audio. Because you can't hear anything while scrobbling the timeline. It's a powerful tool to make single sequences with FX, but not to manage a whole project, better go for Premiere or the like.

Subject of video is swines. I like them, they're clever and it's a stupid common place they love to squelch in the dirt. Vietnamese little pigs are clean like cats. Video is an operatic dadaist inferno - where pigs are menacingly main characters. Not an happy end (as it's my favorite mood), but everybody knows what's a swine destiny (no gory images, anyway). I think also a good video introduction for a live show, to let the people get at once what's the overall climate.

First reviews at Garageband

Well, of course I copy and paste the most accomplishing :-) ) People came back from holidays and had a dozen of reviews at Garageband for Behind The Curtain in Experimental Rock contest.
Now it's 57th on 129, a little above half chart, with a 3.1 score. A little better than Laguardia 3:00 AM (final score 3.0, sound logical :-D).

Song was Track of the day in July 25th.

REVIEWS

wow
interesting guitar harmonies. This is a crazy ass song, cant really wrap my head around it. Crazy guitar work, not much else to the song obviously. weird drum sampler used instead of real drums. One of the weirdest songs ive heard on here. definately experimental rock>? not sure what to classify this as.
Extra Credit: Guitars.

This is where math and rock meet
This is where math and rock meet, and it's messy. But through all the craziness there is a good melody and it's catchy. These guys are tight. I notices after the song ended I was kinda holding my breathe - cool.
Extra Credit: Guitars, Drums, Bass, Melody, Originality.

wow
amazing musicians.very very tight. sounds a little like primus. very original. i think i just had a convulsion.
Extra Credit: Guitars, Originality, Grooviest Rhythm.

Intersting and progressive
Guitar sound should be improved. Everything else in a mix is ok. Although it's complicated it has a memorable melody which is a good thing. Only problem is that there is no some chill out part. It's on and on all the time. Although nice shift around 1:50. It sure is interesting and original. Should have some more changes and dynamics. But considering it's shorter than 3 min it's ok.
Extra Credit: Bass, Originality.

Blipblop, a jazz for spazzez
What the f..!! did i just step into a japanese arcadegame??
Walking slapp-bass, skilled guitars, and good drummer = much creative jazzjamming. Dont know what to say? Its to much! hehe well for most people anyways. It changes the songcostym to fast and often, around 1:55 is the only melody i can remember 10sec after listning. Well it all depends on what your plans are for this song? No MTV hit i promise ;) haha. As for the for musiclovers its a goodvibe tune, making smiles appear.
Extra Credit: Guitars, Production, Originality.

Wowza
This is definitely out there. It is way interesting though. These are some crazy good musicians from a physical standpoint. Fingers and hands must be flying constantly. I could go for a bit more of a mood range, though. It is the same energy almost throughout the entire thing. Really good job though! The Ending is sweet.

ok
Very trippy. It sounds too artificial though. The midi sounding bass kinda ruins it. Very jazzy. A more natural recording will do this song justice. Sounds like a computer game meets primus.
Extra Credit: Originality.

50/50
Touch of primus sound in there. Would like it better if it was live instruments instead of so electronic sounding. As it is, unsure. Can heard the potential though.

Well, sound very pleasant. Many extra credits for originality, production (very clean, I used dry setups on Guitar Rig) and execution. A couple of guys just hated it and gave me for sure one star, so probably the average opinion in people who liked it (sometimes reviewer are not dealing with "their" genre(s), and I wonder why) is around 4.5.

I think this is quite positive!

Behind the Curtain at Garageband contest.

Today I entered Garageband's Experimental Rock contest with Behind the Curtain (from Étoile). I was unsettled on what genre, as this song is progressive but also math rock, a friend of mine told me it's quite kingcrimsonian, and KC are one of the biggest example in oblique music ranging from avantgarde to prog or simple mechanic rock.

Zappa is one of the Big artists suggested by Garageband to define "Experimental Rock", with Mogwai (!). Really, can't see anything in common. But seems to me I'm more zappian than similar to Satriani, suggested by Instrumental Rock (another hypotesis I pondered on, but left after this evidence).

OK, cross my fingers and let's see what's happening! Wooooohoooo!

Étoile - world & symphonic progressive meets kraut rock - is out!

Fourth release by Hox Vox, it's a concept album about stars - both intended as prima ballerinas and celestial bodies - and their issues.

Genre is a series of mixes with world music, symphonic progressive, a bit of contemporary and kraut electronics, always with the free approach of Rock in Opposition tradition (from Zappa to Henry Cow): sometime resulting in complex structures with mindbending pairings of melodies and subtle detuned arrangments.

Étoile start with a Residents-like intro sung by a couple of real pigs, then a piece of math/art rock, sounding like a too dry death metal. Then from Rhythmbox the record begins wedging prog, contemporary, world and electronics.